Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Saturday Morning Adventures #5 Review

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Saturday Morning Adventures #5 Review

They’re the world’s most fearsome fighting team. They’re heroes in a half-shell, and they’re green. They’re…

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are back for another Saturday morning adventure in the comic that reads like your favorite cartoon series from the 90s. Erik, Dan, Ed, and Luis are printing nostalgic gold alongside the editing powers of Thea Cheuk and the talented Charles Beachum.

So the powers at be have heard the threats of Shredder from the subway bases of New York City, and we’ve returned to review yet another classic tale of New York’s mightiest green-shelled Avengers, so don’t forget to pick up your issue today wherever comics are sold, because that Yehudi Mercado retailer cover is fire!

A Channel Six Action Recap

In my best news anchor voice, “In issue #4 of TMNT: Saturday Morning Adventures, an other-dimensional portal was activated in Florida, so Donatello and Raphael went to Florida to find out if it was connected to a meteorite shredder stolen from TCR, leading to an uncanny team-up with the punk frogs.

The turtles and the punk frogs took on Leatherhead to retrieve the zero-matter scalpel, but the deceptive Shredder plucked it from their grasp before they could recover it. Now the punk frogs have come to New York to help Mikey and Leo protect and patrol. Can they stop Shredder’s nefarious schemes before it’s too late?”

One of my favorite parts of these pastime cartoons was the recaps. The art of video editing to create a compelling hook or swell intrigue about an upcoming episode, I believe, was the birth of realizing how artistically creative you could be with a story. I’m pleased this technique is honored before the beginning of each new adventure.

As you read above, Leatherhead took on the turtles and the punk frogs in issue four and failed, so now we have part two of what was originally titled The Swapping Pads, Part 2! Sadly, no Shredder in this episode, but Baxter Stockman seeks out his revenge by kidnapping April O’Neil, quoting lines from the play Richard III. Leo and Mikey come to save April but are zapped with a frequency that only affects turtles, but the irony here is realizing that dimensional jet lag is a thing because he only counts two turtles.

In a showdown at the Floxy Theater, the punk frogs Napoleon and Genghis save Leo and Mikey’s butt, allowing April to free them, sending Baxter, now a fly of all things you could be while fighting frogs, on his unmerry way. 

Yet again, Erik displays his masterful dialogue skills to summon laughter from my inner child, and it’s only something that I could share if you read it too. Issue six is looking pretty promising, with Shredder coming back from the swamp after successfully recovering the zero-matter scalpel, which Donatello and Raphiel think has been swamp-mucked.

Will Shredder assemble the Forever Sword? Are the turtles ever going to try deep-fried onion cupcakes? Will Genghis ever get to drive the Turtle Blimp? Find out next time on TMNT: Saturday Morning Adventures! Don’t forget to support your local comic store or visit your favorite artists and creators at cons. As always, stay geeky, share the network, and don’t forget to catch the latest on Fueled By Weird.